Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag

I know the exact moment when the Assassin’s Creed series lost its mojo. When Ubisoft Montreal killed off Lucy Stillman, the overarching plot with Desmond, Abstergo and the end of the world lost a lot of its potency. Sure, Assassin’s Creed: Revelations andAssassin’s Creed 3 were good games, but they didn’t enrapture players with the deeper mythology and modern-day storyline. It ended up as a frayed mess.

That’s why Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag is important. It’s a way for Ubisoft Montreal to start over, and the franchises can truly be rebooted. It’s a clean slate on a next-generation of consoles, game director Ashraf Ismail said. “We knew that we were going to ship on next-gen.” And this entry is a way to bring new fans into the series. They don’t need to know any of the previous lore (though it helps) because they play as a new, modern-day character.